Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

The Great War Trails in the Ypres Salient

Sample Itinerary for cadet & military groups

Three day itinerary: The below sample itinerary for a two day trip to the battlefields of the Great War is possible from

106.5 EUR per person onwards (based on 50 paying participants, including all meals, museum entries

and overnight stay except the first lunch and transport costs). Itineraries can be custom made and

tailored to your background, local and age group. Tours to the Somme or Arras Battlefields are also

possible from the Peace Village. Please get in touch for more information. In purple, we have

outlined some alternatives (not included in the costs).

Day 1 - Arrival in the local area in the late afternoon using own transport

- Check-in & warm meal at the Peace Village

- Evening activity at the Peace Village: In the Footsteps of the Kiwi’s, an evening walk which

looks at the German defences on the Messines ridge & the NZ tactics used to take them in

1917 during the Battle of Messines.

Day 2 - Breakfast at the Peace Village.

- OPTIONAL: please get in touch with us if you’d like us to recommend a guide to join you on

this trip. Several of the experienced certified local guides have a history in the military

themselves. Cost: 30 EUR / hour..

- LINK THE TOUR TO HOME: supplement these sites with cemeteries, memorials and stories

linked to your local area. You can find an overview for every nationality on our website.

Please get in touch if you would like us to make a few suggestions based on your local

country or country.

- MORNING BATTLEFIELD TOUR (1914 - 1916)

o Geluveld: here we talk about the actions of during the 1st Battle of Ypres and

especially 31 October 1914 related to Worcestershire Regiment, South Wales

Borders, Gordon Highlanders, Black Watch, etc.

o Hill 60: During a walk through the woods, you discover the scars from the war such

as cemeteries, craters, bunkers, etc. The old front lines are marked with coloured

trees. No-man’s land has never been better visualised. Here we tell the story of April

1915 with the German gas attacks and the many VC’s that were awarded here.

Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

o Hooge: this hamlet along the Menin Road has many sites linked to it which can all be

done on foot from here. Choose from the following visits:

- Walk on Bellewaerde Ridge: this walk takes you to Railway Wood RE

Cemetery, the smallest cemetery in the Ypres Salient. Also on the way is a

memorial to the Liverpool Scottish (Noel Chavasse MC, VC & Bar & Second

Battle of Ypres) and a landscape full of craters, untouched since the war. This

walk starts from Entry Point East, a small visitor centre (free of charge) with

an excellent movie.

- Hooge Crater Museum: this family run museum offers a more traditional

visit with some historic displays and an impressive film. It’s an ideal place for

your group to have a rest and look at some of the equipment used during the

war. This site also has toilet facilities.

- Recreated trenches at the back of the museum give the cadets / soldiers an

insight of the advantages of high ground and the use of the terrain. There are

many original artefacts which tell

you about daily life in the trenches.

Both British & German trench

designs have been used. The site is

sealed off and can be used by

groups exclusively for a certain

time.

- Hooge Crater Cemetery: going on the other side of the Menin Road, you

immediately are confronted with the largest CWGC sites on the Western

Front. With almost 6.000 graves, Hooge is

the final resting place of a lot of soldiers

with interesting stories. Further down the

hill, you find Sanctuary Wood & the

cemetery that goes this name. The

Canadian Memorial on Hill 62 tells you

the story of the German offensive &

Canadian counter-attack that took place

here in 1916.

- Packed lunch provided by the Peace Village can be consumed in Hooge

Crater Cafeteria. A free drink is included. Facilities are provided in the

cafeteria.

Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

- AFTERNOON BATTLEFIELD TOUR (1917): Third Battle of Ypres / Passchendaele

o This afternoon, we visit several sites linked to the Third Battle of Ypres. The first

phase of the 3rd Battle of Ypres set off from Hooge (see above) on the 31st July 2017.

More can be added depending on the interest or nationality such as the Welsh

Memorial Park, Scottish Memorial at Frezenberg, Canadian Memorial at Crest Farm,

New Zealand Memorial at s Graventafel or the Belvue Spur, etc.

o Polygon Wood: this wood is still today littered with bunkers and some trench lines

can still be seen. The NZ memorial to the missing and the Buttes New British

Cemetery are key sites to visit. The view from the 5th Australian Division Memorial is

stunning. The wood was taking on the 26th September during the second phase of 3rd

Battle of Ypres.

o Afternoon visit to the Passchendaele Memorial Museum 1917, a hand’s on &

interactive museum which also offers a unique Trench & Dug-out Experience. This

museum closely explains how the trenches & tunnels were constructed and offer a

realistic overview of what they would have looked like.

- Exceptional opportunity for 2017: visit

the authentic WW1 dug-out underneath

the church of Zonnebeke, located next

to the museum. This truly is a once in a

lifetime opportunity. The tunnel will be

open to the public from 31 July – 10

November 2017.

o OPTIONAL: Platoon Experience, A day of living history...

After a visit to the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 and an introduction to the

events and conditions in which the men at the front attempted to survive, we take to

the road. All the participants are fully clothed and equipped as an Australian unit

from that time, therefore including uniform, kit and rifle. We will go into the details

of the military story of 4 October 1917, but personal involvement is the most

important element. As each platoon member will step into the shoes of an Australian

who was actually there and they will walk in the footsteps of their predecessor from

90 years ago to Tyne Cot Cemetery. On the way,

you will learn more about the person and at the

end of the day, at Tyne Cot Cemetery, you will

find out what finally befell your soldier. It is a

sobering confrontation! To continue the theme,

your lunch will consist of a warm Tommy Tucker

meal, soldiers’ fare anno 1917. Cost: € 37 per

pupil, staff € 6.

Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

o Stop at Tyne Cot Cemetery & Memorial. With almost

12.000 headstones, Tyne Cot is the largest

Commonwealth Cemetery in the world. The Memorial

commemorates 35.000 more missing soldiers, most of

whom fell during the 3rd Battle of Ypres, known as

Passchendaele. At the back of the cemetery, there’s an

interesting visitor centre which not only tells the tale of

the Battle of Passchendaele, but also focuses on how

the cemetery was constructed and maintained over the

past century. There are also (payable) toilets available

at this site.

- Warm meal at the Peace Village

- In the evening, we attend the Last Post Ceremony at the Menin Gate in Ypres. This daily act

of remembrance by the local voluntary fire brigade is a perhaps the most attend WW1

ceremony in the world. It was recently performed for the 30 000 time and remains true to its

origins, remembering the missing of the Great War. Please register your attendance on the

website at least a month in advance.

Day 3 - Breakfast at the Peace Village.

- LIFE BEHIND THE LINES LINES TOUR

o OPTIONAL: please get in touch with us if you’d like us to recommend a guide.

o Brandhoek New Military Cemetery: a hospital site (Casualty Clearing Stations) and

also the final resting place of Captain Noel Chavasse VC & Bar, MC. He’s the highest

decorated soldier (doctor) in the Ypres Salient. It is a good place to tell the medical

story along the evacuation route.

o Poperinge:

Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery: the second largest Commonwealth

Cemetery in the world. The site also has a great new visitor centre on

medical aid and some facilities.

Condemned cells Poperinge: several soldiers spend their final night here in

these cells before being executed by their own colleagues the following

morning. A very moving site behind the town hall.

Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

Talbot House in Poperinge: this Every Man’s

Club catered both for soldiers and officers

during the war. The unique atmosphere still lives

on in the old Concert Hall where groups get an

idea of the entertainment from back then. In the

old canteen you can still play the 1915 piano or

relax in the green garden. Upstairs in the old Chapel, you are reminded how

big a part religion played in the life of these men but also that every visit to

this chapel, could be their last one.

Groups are welcome to have their packed lunches on site. Don’t forget to

book your cup of tea. No extra charge but a great experience! Extra

reduction for youth groups: depends on what is included in above itinerary.

Also, 1 EUR reduction if combined with MMP1917.

- Departure

In case of a three day itinerary, you finish your tour here.

Optional: a four day itinerary

An extra overnight stay in the Peace Village is possible from 28 EUR. With an additional overnight

stay, you can attend the famous Last Post ceremony or select another one of the Peace Village

evening activities.

The extra day can be spend in Northern France (Loos, Somme, Vimy, etc.) or on the story of life

behind the lines (medical, relaxations, executions, camps, refugees, etc.). Below you can find some

examples. In purple we have noted some interesting alternatives. We are happy to tailor itineraries

to the groups age, interests, local area, etc. . Please get in touch for extra info.

Day 4 - Life Behind the Lines: the above tour can also be done on day 4

- Northern France Battlefields Tour

o Indian Memorial Neuve Chapelle

The memorial commemorates some 4742 Indian soldiers with no known grave, who

fell in battle while fighting for the British Indian Army during the First World War.

The location of the memorial was chosen because of the participation by Indian

troops at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle in 1914.

Peace Village Nieuwkerkestraat 9a, BE – 8957 Mesen

tel. +32 (0)57 22 60 40 info@peacevillage.be www.peacevillage.be

o Loos Memorial & Dud Corner Cemetery

Dud Corner Cemetery stands almost on the site of a German strong point, the Lens

Road Redoubt, captured by the 15th (Scottish) Division on the first day of the Battle

of Loos (September 1915). The Loos Memorial commemorates over 20,000 officers

and men who have no known grave. The open landscape offers stunning views and

makes it easy to give a historic overview and explication.

o Vimy Ridge Trenches, memorial

On the opening day of the Battle of Arras, 9

April 1917, the four divisions of the Canadian

Corps, fighting side by side for the first time,

scored a huge tactical victory in the capture of

the 60 metre high Vimy Ridge. After the war,

the highest point of the ridge was chosen as

the site of the great memorial to all Canadians

who served their country in battle during the

First World War, and particularly to the 60,000 who gave their lives in France. It also

bears the names of 11,000 Canadian servicemen who died in France - many of them

in the fight for Vimy Ridge - who have no known grave. The grounds around the

memorial are open year-round and contain restored and preserved trenches and

tunnels. To view these, it is recommended that visitors pre-book.

o Wellington Quarry:

It is an underground museum which has been carefully and

sensitively created in a section of the many kilometres of

tunnels dug by the British Army in the 1914-1918 war. The

First World War tunnels connect with original tunnels and

quarries dating back to the middle ages and Roman times

underneath the city of Arras.

- Departure home